Monday, January 31, 2011

The other day I was contacted by the good folks at urbanotv.com, about John Leguizamo's ( it's founder) upcoming show, Ghetto Klown and I got treated (along with several other NYC/local Latino bloggers)to a preview with Steven Fisher and John.
John was engaging and humorous as usual and spoke about how his relationship with Fisher goes back to their early acting days when they played pranks together on others and how his new show includes a lot of insider type scoops and discusses his personal relationships with both his ex wife and his current one. Here are some shots of the event and some words from John.

Don't miss CARLOS on the Sundance Channel, re-airing on Thursday, January 20th beginning at 8pm
ET/PT. The mini-series won over critics everywhere, making tons of " top10 Best lists for 2010" everywhere but unfortunately missed out on an Oscar nod.

WHO IS CARLOS?

CARLOS tells the story of Ilich Ramirez Sanchez who, for two decades, was one
of the most wanted terrorists, on the planet. Between 1974 and 1994, he lived
several lives under various pseudonyms, weaving his way through the complexities
of international politics of the period.

Friday, January 07, 2011

With the worldwide population expected to exceed seven billion in 2011, National Geographic magazine offers a 7-part series examining specific challenges and solutions to the issues we face. The magazine introduces the series with its January cover story "7 Billion," offering a broad overview of demographic trends that got us to today and will impact us all tomorrow. Via http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/7-billion.

Five legendary musicians and performers of the Latin sound whose
contributions have had a lasting impact on American music —Selena,
Carlos Gardel, Carmen Miranda, Tito Puente, and Celia Cruz – will be
honored on stamps. Among the distinctive musical genres and styles
represented are Tejano, tango, samba, Latin jazz, and salsa. The stamps
go on sale in March. [Stamps may be purchased at local Post Offices, at The Postal Store website at www.usps.com/shop, or by calling 800-STAMP-24.]

For these stamps, artist Rafael Lopez, of San Diego, CA, painted
semi-realistic portraits of each musical artist designed to evoke their
personality, vitality, and even their sound. He used a warm palette of
colors—from brilliant yellows, pinks, and lime green to rich shades of
purple and blue—to suggest the flavor and energy these artists brought
to their work. Each musician is depicted in mid-performance. One can
almost hear Celia Cruz shout her trademark rallying cry ¡Azucar!
(Sugar!) or sense Tito Puente's rhythmic intensity as he performed one
of his progressive arrangements on the timbales. Art director Ethel
Kessler, of Bethesda, Maryland, says, “My goal was that when you see the
stamp, you hear the music.”

Lopez's first project for the U.S. Postal Service was the Merengue
design for the 2005 Let's Dance/Bailemos stamp pane, followed in 2007
with the Mendez v. Westminster stamp.

Texas-born Selena Quintanilla-Perez (1971-1995)—known
to fans simply as Selena—helped transform and popularize Tejano music
by integrating techno-hip-hop beats and disco-influenced dance movements
with a captivating stage presence. A Grammy recipient, the “Queen of
Tejano” broke gender barriers with record sales and awards. Even after
her tragic death, Selena remains an important representative of Latino
culture.

A superb and evocative singer, Carlos Gardel (1890?-1935)
was one of the most celebrated tango artists of all time. Raised in
Argentina, Gardel helped popularize the tango in the United States,
Europe, and throughout Latin America through his performances and
recordings. “The man with the tear in his voice” also achieved fame as
one of the stars of the Spanish-language cinema.

Born in Portugal and raised in Brazil, Carmen Miranda (1909-1955)
achieved fame as a samba singer before moving to New York City, where
she gained instant celebrity in theater, film, and radio. The “Brazilian
Bombshell” appeared in 14 Hollywood musicals and recorded more than 300
songs. Her exotic signature outfit and persona are an inexhaustible
source of inspiration.

Born in New York City to Puerto Rican parents, Tito Puente (1923-2000)
was a musical virtuoso popularly known as El Rey, “The King”. With
dynamic solos on the timbales and orchestral arrangements that have
become classics in Latin music, Puente helped bring Afro-Cuban and
Caribbean sounds to mainstream audiences. He performed for more than 60
years, and his legacy includes more than 140 albums.

A dazzling performer of many genres of Afro-Caribbean music, Celia Cruz (1925-2003)
had a powerful contralto voice and a joyful, charismatic personality
that endeared her to fans from different nationalities and across
generations. Settling in the United States following the Cuban
revolution, the “Queen of Salsa” performed for more than five decades
and recorded more than 50 albums.

One last thing, these are forever stamps making them as timeless as the Latin Music Legends who inspired them. via Rafael Lopez's Blog

The queen of Latin soul comes alive again in this one-woman show I cannot miss and can't wait to see.

Performances of They Call Me La Lupe began this week and run through 1/23 at Teatro La Tea in the Clemente Soto Velez Cultural Center in the Lower East Side. For more information call 212-529-1948 or to purchase tickets online at smarttix.com.

And in other exciting news, "John Leguizamo returns to Broadway with his new solo play GHETTO KLOWN for a 12-week engagement beginning previews on February 21 and opening on Tuesday March 22 at the Lyceum Theatre (149 West 45th Street). GHETTO KLOWN is the next chapter in John Leguizamo’s hugely popular personal and professional story. It follows in the unabashed, uncensored, and uninhibited tradition of his Mambo Mouth, Spic-O-Rama, Freak, and Sexaholix…a Love Story."

Who is Literanista?

Valerie M. Russo Evans

New York, NY, United States

A native New Yorker born to Puerto Rican & Sicilian parents in Spanish Harlem's El Barrio, Literanista is a Social Media Strategist, a published poet/writer, has worked at Hachette Book Group, Aol, Thomson Reuters and scouts the web for multicultural literary news, tech trends, innovation, working on her debut novel & about a million other things.

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* All content on Literanista is strictly based on my sole personal opinion & beliefs & not those of my employer. I sometimes receive advance release copies of books, media, and products for promotion purposes.